A repeat offender on probationviciouslyclobbereda rookie NYPD officer,knocking her down onto a Bronx sidewalk before other cops pounced on him in a wild caught-on-camera arrest Thursday evening.
Ernst Delma, 41, slugged the female officer in the face when she tried to break up an argument between him and a group of kidson a Clason Point street corner, authorities and law enforcement sources said.
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Footage captured by a bystandershows the hectic moments after Delma allegedly punched the officer to the ground at about 7:10 p.m. on the corner of Rosedale and Randall Avenues.
Blood streamed from the officer’s face as a bystander helped her up, while her partner rushedthe suspect,the video shows.
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Her partnerlandedat least two haymakersduring a violent struggle on the ground,video shows.
His pants and underwear embarrassingly fell down as he tried toresist the cop, who ultimately handcuffed him, leaving his naked behind exposed as spectators took in the wild scene.
The injured officer sustained a cut to her lip and was taken to a local hospital in stable condition, police said.
A criminal complaint for Delma identified his alleged victim as Mary Fay — a rookie cop with just eight months on the job.
She has only made five arrests, according to police records. Delma’s felony charges were not among them.
As he was walked out of a Bronx police precinct hours after his arrest, Delma sported a stitched-up swollen eye — and tried to show remorse for his actions.
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“I didn’t mean to punch her,” said Delma, clad in a T-shirt sporting the iconic image ofMuhammad Aliafter he knocked out Sonny Liston. “It was a self-defense thing.”
“I’m really sorry for doing it. I didn’t know I did it, I was intoxicated,” he added before he stepped into a police car.
Delma appeared unfazed by his police pummeling when asked about his injuries outside the precinct.
“I got assaulted by a couple officers in my face,” he said. “But nothing too much.Nothing too bad.”
He kept up the claims in court Friday, where he was arraigned on charges of assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration.
Delma spouted apologies and stated that it wasn’t his intention to hit the woman he claimed he didn’t even know was a cop.
Unconvinced, a judge set Delma’s bail at $100,000 bond.
“We’re glad that this dangerous individual is staying off the streets, but nobody should believe his sorry excuse that he didn’t know he assaulted a police officer,” PBA President Patrick Hendry told The Post.
“The facts are the facts: Our sister was in full uniform, with her shield shining on her chest, when he walloped her hard enough to knock her to the ground and cause serious injuries. He’s not sorry he hit her. He’s sorry he got caught.”
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He was taken to St. Barnabas for evaluation following the arrest.
Delma, who is on probation for a New Jersey conviction, has numerous prior arrestsforassault and burglary over the past few years – including a July 2022 case in which he randomly slugged a woman along Broadway in Midtown, law enforcement sources said.
The woman, 57, was walking near the Minskoff Theatre, a tourist hotspot that hosts The Lion King, when Delma clocked her in the face, sources said. His brutal attack left her with redness to her nose and upper lip, according to sources.
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New Jersey officials didn’t return The Post’s request for more details about Delma’s probation as of publication.
Court records from the Garden State, however, hint Delma may have a history of attacking police. A defendant with the same name and age as Delma pleaded guilty in 2012 to throwing a bodily fluid at a police officer, records show.
Hendry condemned the ugly attack on another police officer.
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“Thankfully our sister is recovering from this brutal assault. But this is exactly what happens when the justice system cares more about coddling criminals than backing up cops on the street,” he said in a statement.
“We’ll be watching to make sure this individual is charged appropriately and kept off the street. Our sister and her partner did their job. Now everyone else in the criminal justice system needs to do theirs.”Just last week, twoNYPD cops were shotand wounded as they attempted to arrest a suspect in Lower Manhattan.
Just last week, twoNYPD cops were shotand wounded as they attempted to arrest a suspect in Lower Manhattan.
